Defiance
by inuyasharbd15fan09
Summary: He'd stand by her side against anything. Even if it is against the Justice League. Even if it's against the world. Random Oneshot.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Just a random oneshot. Of which the plot line could be said to be in the middle of a story line, or just...plain randomness. I really don't think I can come up with a story line for this fic so it'll probably stay a oneshot. **

**Oh, the JL guest star one this oneshot. yay! ...okay. ehem. First time I've written 'em somewhere so they're obviously OOC. **

**And don't think Superman's just being a butt head here. I like the guy (not as much as Batman! XD) but somewhere he said that he "Hated demons". And isn't that what Raven is? I mean, is half of? ...keep that in mind when you're reading this...**

**on with the random plot line! **

"_What are you playing at_?" he questioned, the usually passive steel blue eyes gone cold. The two of them remained motionless, staring him down even though they stood on the platform below them.

"You summoned _us_," Raven reminded them. Robin, besides her, gave a curt nod, and met each older gaze with a silent challenge, lingering on a particular gaze the longest. The atmosphere suddenly crackled with sensitivity to non-visible energy. Raven's gaze snapped to the man farthest to the right, his skin green and an elongated face, with a squared-shaped cranium, iris-less red eyes meeting hers. Whispers began to chant in her ears and she felt more than saw from the edge of her vision, Robin flinch. They still observed them, waiting them to cave. The silence was getting deafening. "Don't. Even. Try. It." she warned. Faces turned to peer at the Martian at the right, whose eyes slightly flashed at her reply.

"J'onn?" the Man of Steel questioned.

"I cannot penetrate her mind," he replied, scowling somewhat. The Kryptonian's gaze hardened and gazed back onto the younger heroes before them.

"What have you to hide?" the Amazonian Princess questioned, leaning slightly forward, her black tresses casing her bare shoulders.

"It's not what she has to hide," Robin suddenly answered, directing the heated stare-off off of Raven and onto him, "But what she is protecting _J'onn_," he signaled to the Martian, "From."

"Oh?" The second woman, whose feathers ruffled in her seat, directed their attention. "What exactly _is _she protecting him from?"

"Insanity." Raven's simple reply spread a silence between them, virtually an invisible wall between the League and themselves. Robin took in the straight posture of Superman, his clenched fists on top of the metal table, his knuckles white from the strain. Wonder Woman shared a brief glance with the man opposite seated from the Man of Steel, his cowl creased in thought.

"Why should you be trusted?" the question came from the Dark Knight, making all eyes fall on his demeanor. His voice immediately prompted an answer, his countenance revealing none of his thoughts.

"Are you questioning my loyalty of protecting the city?" Raven snapped back, the bubbling sensation of irritation simmering with not only her own, but a certain someone's old bitter-sweet reminiscence. Her reply, however was not left encountered.

"You came to us, a while back, remember?" for the first time, an African American man, dressed in black and green, spoke, directing the conversation into dangerous territory.

"And her plea for help was tossed aside, if I remember correctly?" Robin countered.

"She warned us of a coming apocalypse -" Suddenly, the Martian slammed his hands onto the surface of the desk, wearing now a pain stricken face, sweat already on his brow, eyes scowled shut.

"J'onn?" Superman questioned, slightly rising from his seat. A sudden grunt directed his attention to the Empath before the League, her hooded head lowered, her pale hands clutching at her head. Robin gripped her forearms and turned Raven to face him. The older heroes weren't able to hear, something was blocking off the Kryptonian's sensitive hearing, what the Wonder Boy mumbled to the Empath. Her tense shoulders constricted and his hushed voice picked up in pace. J'onn cried out again and slammed the other hand down.

"What is she doing to him?!" demanded the Green Lantern, already out of his seat.

"Hara, is she killing him!?" Wonder Woman questioned, too rising. Raven's knees buckled. Robin's right arm fell from her forearm and held her back, leaning into her to support her small weight. Batman suddenly too rose, yet he made no move towards either twitching alien.

"J'onn tried to pry into her mind by force. That alone does damage."

"Precaution is necessary," Superman reminded him in a strained voice. Both men connected gazes, making Diana bounce her eyes from man to man.

"So much that it might kill J'onn, if not both?" he questioned, his nonchalant demeanor wearing thin. Breaking his gaze from Clark's, he faced his previous protégé and the Empath. "Dick. Bring her back. Tell her to release J'onn." Both masked men shared a pause before Robin knelt too and pulled back Raven's hood, revealing mauve locks, severed short of her shoulders. His lips neared her ear. The rest, excluding the flinching J'onn, watched warily at the performance of the Leader of the Titans, cradling the Empath. Her body flinched once more before both eyes squeezed shut, making J'onn groan as he suddenly sat back in his chair, his large hands covering his face. Raven buried her face into Robin's shoulder as he maneuvered them back to a standing position. Her breath came shallow, mirrored by the Martian Manhunter's. Raven's sudden whisper to Robin's ear, his sudden straightened back and scowl, was not gone unnoticed by the leading man of the League.

"J'onn, are you alright?" Hawkwoman questioned, placing a hand on his bare bicep. The Martian swallowed, followed by a nod. He glared at the Azerethian Empath, finally lifting her cool gaze to face the anxious crowd of heroes.

"_What is this!?" _Robin suddenly demanded, as Raven slipped her hood back on. "If you are here to question my decision of letting Raven be a part of my team-"

"This goes beyond the formation of the Titans," Superman growled, "This woman here, as a child, came to warn us of a coming Apocalypse."

"You mean the rebirth of Trigon the Terrible?" Robin demanded, letting Raven stand firm on her feet before turning his full attention on the League, "If that's the case, there's no need to worry. That won't be happening." The heroes gaped in surprise, spreading murmurs amongst each other, excluding J'onn and The Batman.

"How are you so sure this won't be happening?" the Green Lantern questioned, sitting back down. Superman remained silent, his eyes practically holding back the red piercing light wanting to incinerate the current _problem_.

"Because, we, the Titans, have already stopped it."

"There was no knowledge of this event occurring on the planet-"

"And you won't find one," Robin cut off.

"Because?" prompted the Man of Steel.

"Raven stopped time as this took place and with the defeat of Trigon, brought everything back to normal." Silence followed as they seemed to simmer over the news in their minds. The Kryptonian suddenly leaned to his side and murmured something to The Batman. Without a signal of receiving the message, the Dark Knight promptly stood up and turned from the table, pausing only for his approach to alert the automatic doors, and continued on his way. The Man of Steel nodded towards Wonder Woman and followed the way his team member had taken.

"And there is another reason why this won't take place." The Man of Steel froze at J'onn's growl.

"Please elaborate," the Amazonian princess pleaded, sneaking back a glance at the now returning Man of Steel.

"They," the Martian Manhunter signaled to the heroes as well, "Speak of a prophecy. A prediction of what is to come, of how it is to take place. There is an assured way that this prophecy will not come through."

"Which is?" the Kryptonian prompted, controlling his anger.

"The empath be with child." Immediately all eyes fell on the young woman, the young hero of the city of Jump.

"What!?"

"This cannot be-"

"This insolence will not be tolerated-"

"Are you sure-?"

"Enough!" Robin yelled, standing in front of said Empath. The second-in-command team member remained silent.

"Listen young hero-!"

"No you listen!" the Boy Wonder silenced them. "Raven has as much right as anyone to have a life, no less to bare her child!"

"_So…it is true. She's with child?!_" the Man of Steel silently seethed. Diana spared him a worried glance. This did not bode well.

"Yes," the Empath answered for herself, though she did not step aside the Boy Wonder.

"And the father?"

"Of what concern is it of yours?" Hawkwoman gave a small hiss, fluttering her feathers at the Empath's snark.

"_Mild _curiosity," Superman retorted, sarcastically. Though this sarcastic remark was far from prompting humor. His knuckles were once again white. Robin glanced back at the Empath, who rose her head defiantly. His thigh length black cape that had encased his broad shoulders now parted as his gloved hand reached back and took Raven's. The League received their answer before either Titan spoke.

"I am the father," Robin confirmed.

* * *

**A/N: Like I said, random. But, filled with R'n'R. ...I just had to, man. lol. hope y'all liked. Some feedback would be nice. :3**

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Because you guys had questions and seemed to like it (which surprised me) and there was the question of someone saying that it was confusing, I wish to continue with a part two …bit. Thing. Call it what you wish. Thank you to those who reviewed. You know who you are. You guys are very special. 8D**

**Ps - I noticed that no one mentioned Flash …or the lack of him. I totally forgot him. Well, here he is!**

* * *

"You cannot allow this to happen." The Man of Steel paced. The Amazonian crossed her arms. The Dark Knight leaned against the corner of the room of which he had stepped into mid "conference" with the guardians of Jump City.

"And why not?"

"Because," he reasoned with her, "Her means are not for the good of Mankind. She attacked J'onn -"

"An attack that would not have happened had he not invaded her mind at your demand," Batman pointed out. Superman whirled to face him.

"And what do you propose? That they should be allowed to have the child?"

"If you want to talk about ethics, Clark, then yes. Let her bare the child."

"Don't you talk to me about ethics. Not you." Both men's faces withdrew of emotion as they faced each other. Superman broke the stare-off when the door opened and the others stepped in.

"They remain where you have left them," Hawkwoman informed. The Kryptonian's fists began to visibly shake.

"Have they broken any rules?" The Amazonian Princess called for their attention, "By baring a child of their own? They are conscientious adults."

"They're barely considered adults," the Green Lantern pointed out, at which he added at the Gotham Guardian's direction, "Robin's like, what, 21?"

"And a half."

"And the Empath?"

"In Earth years, 18," answered the Martian Manhunter. The Flash cast him a worried glance. He'd missed the meeting but apparently not the argument.

"Are we arguing about the existence of their baby or the fact that Raven is part of the Titans?" All eyes glared back at the younger member of the League. "What?"

"**Wally**."

"What?"

"He's right," Diana admitted, not without casting him a scolding glance, "What is the real reason we still hold council with them?"

"Because of the prophecy," J'onn assisted. He now stood by The Man of Steel's side.

"That they stopped."

"So they swear," at the African American man's words, all eyes directed to the Martian Manhunter.

"J'onn." He blinked.

"I cannot currently see into her mind to detect if in fact she is still a menace to Earth's survival and that of Man."

"You said so yourself," Wonder Woman argued, now standing along side Batman. The Dark Knight was no longer leaning and made it more obvious of his taller stature than the majority of the people in the room. The window to their right overlooked to the talking teammates at the bottom of the conference room. "By being with child, the empath is now no longer able to go forth with her prophecy."

* * *

"You didn't have to do this." Robin turned to face her. His masked gaze went from the double paned window to the depth of the cowl of his teammate, into the deeper depths of her eyes. The unearthly shadow cast by her hood concealed her identity but not her soul to those who dared peer into her eyes.

"Of course I did."

"Why?" came her sharp question. "Because you're my leader?"

"No." He took a step closer, the sound of his steel toed boot in the vast room echoing all the way up the ceiling. "Because it's my responsibility as the father." She blinked and looked away. He gripped her chin and made those eyes look into his own. "It's going to be alright."

"I know."

"I won't let them harm the baby."

"You think I will?" her eyes flashed and made a smirk appear on his façade.

"I had high doubts you would," they had their backs to the conversing League. "We're in this together."

"We are."

* * *

"So what will you have him do, Clark?" The Dark Knight rumbled, hidden beneath the darkness of his appearance and cloak. "Have J'onn penetrate her mind again to deduce if it lied to him in the first place?" the Kryptonian shared a glance with the Martian Manhunter.

"I can only enter it now, through her permission."

"…Have Robin agree with letting J'onn enter her mind. We shall be able to confirm if she is indeed no longer a hazard to Earth's survival. And that the child she carries is indeed the key to the failure of the prophecy." The Fastest Man on Earth shared a glance with the man garbed in green and black. The Big Three walked out of the room, leaving the rest to mull over things.

"Are you alright, J'onn?" Hawkwoman asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I shall recover."

"What did you see in there?" asked a curious young League member dressed all in red. The alien's red eyes squinted at the memory.

"Madness. Chaos. I could not see a possible way of release. Her mind kept me captive. It was until she had harness her control over it that she was able to release me free from it."

"Yeesh."

"My exact words exactly," he mumbled to Flash.

"Do you believe either the empath or her leader are lying, J'onn?" questioned the woman with wings, crossing her arms and ruffling her auburn hair. "And please, be honest."

"You lied to Superman?" the Green Lantern exclaimed.

"I was able to read what I had. I am still not sure of what I saw in there was true."

"They're kids. What do you expect from them?" three pair of eyes scolded the Fastest Man on Earth. "What?"

"Look who's talking."

"Nice. Pick on the younger hero."

* * *

Both Titans turned at the sound of the door opening. The frame of the Man of Steel almost blocked the other two heroes behind him. But no matter who you were, the Dark Knight behind the patriotic Kryptonian was undeniably noticeable. They stopped behind their assigned seating on their table a story and a half above the platform the younger heroes stood, all except one.

"Come Robin." Without waiting for his response, the Dark Knight walked to the end of the table, down an almost hidden staircase and towards automatic steel doors. His prior protégé did not budge.

"I'm not leaving without her." Wonder Woman glanced downward towards the owner of the voice and noticed his hand intertwined with the Empath's as well. Batman did not falter in his steps.

"She comes with."

"What?!" quickly, she gripped the Kryptonian's arm and held him. He sharply glanced back at her. The Dark Knight disappeared from the room behind the automatic doors. Sharing a glance, the teammates began their trek after him. The Amazonian Princess waited till the younger heroes were gone for her to release her grip on the Man of Steel.

"What are you doing?"

"Were you really going to attack them?"

"No. Of course not."

"Control yourself, Clark."

"You may side with your boyfriend in trifle matters, Diana. But do not follow Bruce's example." He made to turn from her and head for J'onn to tell him that he had permission but she stopped him.

"I am siding with reason. Bruce has no influence in this." He continued towards his destination without a word. "Hera, Superman! See beyond your hate for the evils of demons. Clearly not all are malevolent." The doors closed behind him.

* * *

"We're not going to abort."

"Clearly you're not, Dick."

"Stop it." They were in a hallway. Mechanical sounds came here and there from within the floating WatchTower but none which distracted the stare off of the Boy Wonder and The Dark Knight. Silence settled in.

"I consent." Robin looked back towards Raven. What was she talking about?

"Consent to what?" he replied warily.

"J'onn?" the older superhero cut in. It was more of a statement than a question.

"Good hearing," she snapped at Batman. His face revealed no emotion to her reply. Her gaze turned to Robin's searching one. "J'onn has been blocked by my mind. They wish to prove that he had in fact found that I was with child, for one, and that he/she stops the Prophecy from coming true."

"This is idiotic," Robin growled, "He saw it when he bulldozed into her mind. No way."

"Superman is persistent."

"You take orders from him now?"

"Dick -"

"What?"

"I believe you should have the child." Both Titans were taken by surprise. Their hands had not released each other's. The hall was the same as their own Towers. Impersonal steel walls and ceiling. Some material that resembled steeled carpet made up the floors. To their left, were the doors of the elevators that lead down to the docking floor of all planes and transportation.

"Why?" Robin asked with caution.

"You must take up the consequences of your actions." Robin gave a small snort of disbelief. He released Raven's hand and crossed his arms.

"What? You mean us having sex, without proper protection?" he snapped with sarcasm.

"Robin."

"What?" he turned, his eyes softening a bit toward his second-in-command.

"Let them probe my mind," to the Dark Knight she directed, "J'onn will have my help to direct him from coming across …matters that do not concern Superman's "curiosity"." Robin shook his head in disbelief. "I will be fine, Robin. So will the boy."

"Boy?"

"..Our child," she replied with a small smile and a flash of her eyes. Robin's own smile mirrored her own and he gripped her hand again.

"How will you fare in this, Dick?" They blinked and remembered them to be in front of a dark and impassible one-person audience.

"What do you mean?" she demanded, warily. Robin sighed with acknowledgement.

"Our bond, he means."

"No. That is one of the things I shall reroute the Martian Manhunter away from." Both stared down at the taller hero. Silence filled the space between them.

"I shall contact you at a later time, Richard," Gotham's Guardian assured before with a twirl of pitch black uniform, walked back into the conference room.

"Are you sure you and the kid will be alright?"

"I assured you we will be fine." Robin sighed and placed a hand on her cheek.

"I'm holding you to that promise. I'm not holding back if you do come to harm. God damn the consequences." Her amethyst eyes gazed into his camouflaged ones though thick lashes. His hand slithered to the back of her neck and gripped her head softly, causing her hood to fall back. Mauve locks shined, reflecting the lighting of the hall.

"It's not wise to damn the Gods, Robin. Regardless of what planet and orbit you're in."

"I'd fight against them too," he whispered nearing her lips, "For you."

* * *

"J'onn," the Man of Steel alerted the Martian Manhunter. Said alien stood. The stronger of the current Teen Titans West members stood before them again. The table of the League now stood complete. Flash sneaked glances around the members of heroes around himself. "Well?" Superman directed at the Leader of the young heroes.

"We consent to the Martian Manhunter to search into Raven's mind to prove to you all once and for all that she poses no threat to anyone whatsoever." The team members no longer held hands but stood close, the Boy Wonder up front. His black cape encasing his shoulders. Before the Kryptonian could open his lips, however, Robin intervened, "However, if Raven comes to harm-"

"I assure you I would be the most probable one to come to harm in this situation," J'onn interrupted.

"You were warned," replied, her glare prominent through her shadow cast face. The air filled again with the sense of electricity as the Martian Manhunter stood, and maintaining his gaze with the empath, walked around the table and down the stars Batman had taken. The Kryptonian leader fisted his hands before them, now standing as well. The League watch vigilantly as J'onn finally approached the Titans. With obvious hesitation, Robin took a step aside. Seeming to be displayed before them, Raven stood before the also telepathic alien. She took down her cowl, and glared defiantly into the iris-less blood red eyes. Her own eyes flashed. The young Leader did not step back however, stood between them, a small distance away. His eyes sharply on J'onn.

"You've taken this too far, Superman," Batman imputed. To the untrained eye, the Man of Steel would have appeared to not have reacted to his right hand man's words. But he had.

"Batman-"

"How can you side with this…this child?" the Kryptonian worded almost at a whisper, "She was sired by a demon feared in many a galaxy and yet you wish to allow her to reside in Earth? And live out a possible prophecy that could be the end of our home?"

"You said it yourself, a possible prophecy."

"A probability I'm not willing to risk."

All talk ended when J'onn raised his hands and hesitantly placed them to temple height of the Empath's shortness. With a curt nod from her, J'onn entered her mind. Involuntarily, both flinched and crushed their eyes closed. Robin raised a hand but hesitated at touching Raven. Whispers filled the air. Yet no lips worded them. The room seemed to tilt slightly. The whispers got darker. The Martian's green hands flinched but remained hovering near the Empath's temples. Raven's lips parted and it seemed she was bracing herself against something internally. The Kryptonian folded his fisted - near white knuckled - hands behind himself and stood tall. J'onn broke free suddenly. The whispering stopped. The room seemed to return to its normal vertigo. Raven wavered slightly. Robin took her shoulder and steadied her, adding his other arm to her waist. Labored breathing filled the silence of the room.

"Happy?" Robin shot up to the stoic Man of Steel. The Martian sought to control his labored breathing and took a step back, steadying himself.

"What did you see?" the Dark Knight prompted toward J'onn.

"It is true. The child is the key to the Prophecy's demise."

"And?"

"That the Prophecy has come and gone. What they swore is true. That the Empath had frozen time and returned it to its proper sense. No human has recollection of this Apocalyptic even happening. Less, their teammates."

"How does the child come into preventing the prophecy?" the Amazonian puzzled, asked.

"The demon was to be born from within the Empath. At his arrival, she would have disappeared. But now that her womb homes a natural produced child, the demon cannot be." No one took note of his slight brashness. Wally peered down at the younger heroes. He had to give them point for standing for one another. Especially Robin. For taking on the heat from both Superman and Batman. Especially Batman's. Superman, deep down, was a big softy. Batman…he wasn't so sure.

"…Very well," the Kryptonian replied after a while, tensely. "This council is adjourned." Robin grasped Raven's hood and placed it over her head. He whispered at that low level that annoyed the Kryptonian, for he couldn't hear it again. She nodded and leaned a bit more heavily onto his frame. He glared up at the mighty council and turned them to walk out.

**A/N: ta...da?**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: That's right. I dared. I dared add another chapter to this once oneshot. Now it's a three-shot. Heh. ….I probably ruined it. Sorry.**

* * *

"What happened? What did they want?" came the immediate greeting from the Cybernetic Man, his crossed arms gleaming from the reflection of the setting sun. The docking doors slowly closed, housing the enormous contraption they called a jet. Both Titans turned, Raven's hood still up.

"I'll explain in a minute's notice. Gather the others." After a fleeting look sent to the remaining silent teammate, Cyborg nodded, and headed to the doors leading to the elevators, rising his arm to communicate with the others.

"How are you feeling?" Robin seemed to ask her for the millionth time since they had left the floating station of the Justice League. She raised her head, eyes flashing in the dark depths of her cloak.

"In the same state I was five minutes ago." He smirked.

"Good."

"Are we going to inform them all of my …our condition?"

"Yes."

"In order for them all to have the same story in case any sneaking Justice League member decides to snoop around?" A dark cloud gave way across the Titans' Leader's face. But it was gone as quick as it came.

"Damn them if they find anything to the contrary. We heeded to their call for us, out of courtesy. But they sure as hell don't run our lives." His masked face flashed her a confident side smirk that hid his anger through the façade he wore.

* * *

"Are they back?" asked the towering Tameranean, who turned from monitoring the gigantic CCTV they housed in the Titans' Conference Room. Victor Stone looked up from his Comm. Link on his arm, a grave expression on his face.

"They just got on the rooftop. They're heading down right now. And he's told us to pull up communications with the other stationed Titans, for those who can't come." With a small nod, Koriand'r turned back to the monitors.

"Calling all Titans. Emergency conference in Mother Tower, West Tower. T-minus five minutes for the commence of this meeting. I repeat, Emergency Conference. Maintain all concealed Comm. Link signals open." She then turned, transforming the rest of the large CCTV monitors that served as their glass wall facing Jump City, back to open screens to allow the other Towers to view them. "All other members contacted."

"Good. Robin and Raven are on their way."

"Do you know the meaning of the conference they asked of them?"

"Not a clue," Cyborg replied, taking her side along the monitors. Green lights signaled their messages had been received and more so, by the minute. Promptly, the green Changeling entered the conference room.

"What's going on?"

"Emergency Conference. In a few minutes."

"Are Robin and Raven back yet?"

"Just arrived. They'll be joining us shortly."

"I just hope it has nothing to do with the baby." Both the Cybernetic Man and the Tameranean Princess stopped at Garfield's words.

"…What baby?" Garfield looked up, his animal-like irises widening.

"The baby Raven is carrying. You know, the -"

"I was not aware that Raven was with child!" cried Starfire, in surprise.

"You're not the only one," Cyborg replied after a while. He blinked. "What's going on, here?" The doors behind the Changeling opened, and few other members of Titans arrived.

"What's going on?" Wonder Girl asked, her dark hair framing her shoulders.

"Welcome all. Take your seats. Robin will be here shortly." The teen dubbed Beast Boy stepped back and pressed a key code on the far wall, which allowed the center piece of the floor to pull down, and back to allow a long oval like table to rise, accompanied by chairs. The steel surface shined sharply, contrasting with the carpeted floors of the conference room. In the middle of the table, the branded Titans logo gleamed suddenly, as if to alert it the table was ready to assist them where they needed. The Titans followed suit, seating in their assigned seating arrangements. The three giant monitors blinked out of stand by mode, and the connections revealed a view of the other Towers' conference areas. Tower East in the middle monitor. North and South, on either side.

The doors to the conference room opened and Titans West's Leader stepped in, along with his second-in-command.

"Sorry for the short notice everyone. But I have an announcement to make," Robin greeted, his voice emotionless and controlled. Raven walked to the Table and sat to Starfire's side, taking a seat. Eyes followed her in the action.

"What is it, Robin?" Asked the Atlantian Prince, his iris less black eyes, staring at Robin's still standing figure, from across the middle screen.

"Earlier in the evening, Member Raven and myself were called to a conference with Watch Tower and were held audience of the Justice League." Across the monitors, a few murmurs came through.

"What did they want, Robin?" Asked Cyborg, prompting the attention of his leader to himself. A brief glance between them transpired before Robin cleared his throat.

"As you are all aware, as described in the reports filed a few years ago, the biological sire of Raven, Trigon the Terrible from a different dimension, came to Earth at the demise of our teammate." Immediately, searching dazzling iris-less neon green eyes glanced sideways at the Empath. "But of course, thanks to Raven, she was able to send Trigon to a perpetual imprisonment." Robin paused, and folded his hands behind his back, taking a strict position in front of his seat at the head of the Table. "Fearing his return when The League became aware of such a prophecy, of which they were warned many years before hand, they called myself and Raven to their presence immediately." The Leader of the Titans gave a glance towards Raven, whose chin raised slightly. "They dubbed her a threat of the existence of humankind-"

"What?" called out Koriand'r, turning her attention to Robin. "But he's been forever banned, has he not?" A few more outcries carried out, from the monitors and among the present members.

"Settle down, guys. …Raven informed me a few months ago of a long forgotten prophecy that was murmured in the case that Trigon was defeated - which they thought impossible."

"What prophecy?" asked Garfield, a look of hidden anxiety reflected on his eyes. Cyborg remained silent, studying Raven's normally placid face. Her cowl hid the upper half of her face but her chin remained in display. He caught sight of her tense lips. Eyes across the screens studied the Titans West intensely.

"This prophecy foretold that in order to prevent the return of Trigon the Terrible, under any circumstances that he breaks free… Raven must be with child."

Immediately, a collection of sharp intakes of breathes interrupted the tense air around them. Two pairs of eyes gave a fleeting glance towards the changeling.

"….how does that prevent Trigon's arrival?" asked the Leader of Tower East, the iridescent yellow-and-black ensemble glistening under the lights.

"Raven," Robin prompted his teammate, making eye contact with, but did not take his seat. The Empath raised her chin firmly and rose.

"Trigon, in order to reappear and wreak havoc again, must be born. As soon as it came to their attention that I could be a possible hazard to humanity, I was placed under scrutiny. The Justice League warned me that I could not remain here if I was such a hazard. …_Especially _procreate, and possibly intensify my threat level with others like myself."

"That's _preposterous_," exclaimed a pink hair-ed witch Titan.

"And they have no right!" joined Beast Boy, followed by a tight nod from Starfire.

"No they don't," Robin called the attention back to himself. "It's not the first instance where the Leading Heroes of the World have called us into council, attempting to harbor any sort of existence beyond our vows to become the next generation of Earth's Protectors." Underneath the table, the pink-hair-ed witch grasped hands with the Second fastest being in the world. "We understand that our first duty is protecting the citizens of Earth. But that doesn't mean that we are not without right to live like them, to live among them."

"So what are we going to do about Raven's situation?" Victor asked, speaking up. His leader's masked gaze connected with his own. Cyborg gave a discreet intake of breath when his sensors detected Robin's accelerated heart rate, the temperament hidden under the emotionless mask.

"Luckily…dire consequences were avoided."

"Meaning what?" asked the doppelganger from a different dimension of the Amazonian Princess. A small sardonic laugh escaped Robin's lips.

"Raven was _allowed _to remain on earth." He paused and looked at his second-in-command. "Under the unauthorized telepathic examination from the Martian Manhunter, He concluded the second prophecy was not of our making and that it indeed was true. He detected no sign of Trigon in Raven's mentalist universe because-"

"The second prophecy has come true."

"You mean?"

"Yes, I am with child." A wide smile appeared on Koriand'r 's face, and mixed reactions appeared all around them. Outside of Tower West, the nighttime came to cover Jump City in shadows.

"To summarize this communication, I bid you to keep a vigil eye on the grape-vines if any discussions about the decision of Raven's residence to the contrary appear." Nods moved on and off screen. "The decision was given apprehensively. And a decision given like that has a tendency to change. So…keep an eye out for us, alright?"

"Tower East is on alert."

"As well as Tower North -"

"And South."

"Thank you all. I'm aware I'm putting you guys in a compromising position-"

"Nonsense. It's Titans first, then the League," comforted Cyborg, a grin spreading his human face into a defiant stance. Nods and murmurs of approval joined his as well. Raven's lips parted and a breath escaped her.

"Good. This adjourns the meeting. Thank you all for sparing some time."

"Tower North, out."

"Tower East, out."

"Tower South, out." The screen became blank, then bled into clarity to reveal a view of Jump City at night. The Tameranean Princess rose, and immediately applied a large hug onto the Empath.

"Congratulations, _shaylkagniz_!"

"Thank you?"

"It is the given title of a mother to be in my planet," Koriand'r translated, "You must be very joyous to be an awaiting mother." The Former sidekick of the Dark Knight side glanced at Raven, who allowed a light blush to appear on her cheeks.

"I am…"

"Hey Robin!" Cyborg called to his Leader, a bit aside the congratulating crowd on the right side of the Table. "Got a sec?" Not responding, Robin walked to the Cybernetic Man.

"Yes?"

"You said…you said J'onn invaded Raven's mind…forcefully." The dark shadow crossed Robin's face briefly before he ejected a breath, and crossed his arms.

"Yes, he did. But fortunately, neither came out unscathed."

"Lucky J'onn."

"I know. I warned them not to do it again. Not just because of Raven. But those who attack her telepathically, could get permanently hurt." Cyborg nodded and glanced back at Raven, who looked uncomfortable among her teammates.

"Wow. I never would have imagined Raven pregnant."

"Me either." Cyborg placed his hands onto his hips.

"This is so damn annoying." Robin glanced back at him.

"What is?"

"This, the Justice League hover over our shoulders thing." His leader shook his head, agreeing.

"All we have to do is not let them control us."

"I know they're tying their best and all but they won't win the confidence and team effort they want if they keep …governing recruits."

"You don't have to tell me. Luckily, their efforts aren't working."

"Luckily." Koriand'r extended another hug. This time, the Empath raised her arm and returned it with a loose hug. After allowing the Titans a moment's view-over of the current state of Jump, the middle screen/window bled back to its monitor form and a blue print of the city's topography appeared. With a warning, Garfield pressed the code to the wall again and the Table began to disappear.

* * *

"You don't think you handled yourself erroneously, Superman?" Diana asked, crossing her arms under her bust. Clark Kent faced the windows, a magnificent view of Earth before him, his arms crossed behind his broad back.

"No."

"But to _forbid _a another member to procreate-"

"She. Isn't. A member."

"And why isn't she, according to you?" Bruce Wayne asked, standing in the unlit section of the lounge of the fifth level of the Floating Station. The last son of Krypton raised his head. He didn't answer for a moment.

"…My encounter with demons have always ended badly. Both for me and them. And she, is a demon. This doesn't look too bright, for the future."

"That doesn't necessarily mean Raven is the same."

"_Don't _be a _hypocrite_, Diana," Superman whirled around, glaring. He raised a meaty hand, pointing at her. "Not too long ago you agreed with my logic that she shouldn't reside on Earth." The Amazonian Princess took the jab on the chin and raised it boldly.

"I won't deny that years ago, I took the same standpoint you took, that demons should not run amongst humans. I supported your theory…with events of my own."

"So-"

"_But _unlike you, Clark, I have learned and changed perspectives. I have too experienced that honor and courage of good intentions that sometimes lie under the veil of darkness." At this, the Man of Steel send a fiery glare towards the Dark Knight. "In this instance, it was not the fault of this young child to be brought to existence through her dark father and ill intentioned mother. So why should she be judged, when she has shown nothing but the efforts of her pledge to maintain Earth safe?"

"_Safe_?! Keep it _safe_?! Diana, she brought the world to its knees!"

"The world is fine now. No one but the members of the Titans know what happened."

"Now that she has returned it to it's normal state. What's to say she won't loose control?"

"Oh I've had it!" Wonder Woman rose, glaring icy blue eyes into Superman's own. "Just because you _physically _represent the leadership of this force against villainous attempts against civilians, does not enable you to be the actual leader of the Justice League, Superman."

"_I-" _

"No, I've had it. There is no liable reason to maintain surveillance on the Titans. We _trust _them." Diana placed her hands on her waist. "Don't we, Clark?"

"…_Fine_. You win, Diana. I'll back off. But when that child is born and wreaks havoc like its mother, do not come running to me." Turning sharply from the other two Heroes, Superman walked out of the lounge.

"Sometimes…that _man_…"

"He's been corrupted. Slowly. But he has." The Amazonian Warrior turned to the Dark Knight of Gotham City.

"What do you mean?"

"He's friends with the United States government. He's become their one-man army."

"He has not," she weakly defended.

"No? Then explain to me his behavior just now," he glared, his cowl's white eyes squinting.

"He's headstrong. His race always was like that."

"Sure. And the need to have him in U.N. conferences when there's suspicion of the League? They trust him, Diana. And he's slowly being guilt ridden that to pay back for that trust, to have his vow to control the rest of the League, if push comes to shove." Wonder Woman looked away.

"I don't know… I just think this whole situation could have been avoided."

"As do I."

"But," she shook her head, "All in all, at least Raven and Robin have been given a chance to _relish _the experience of bringing a new life to this world." Her eyes gave him a side glance.

"They required no permission from Clark to do so in the first place."

"I know…" her arms wrapped around her self.

"If you'll excuse me." Dark cape encasing his broad shoulders, the Dark Knight made way to walk out of the lounge. A bare hand stopped his shoulder.

"Bruce…"

"Yes, Diana?"

"…Nothing. Congratulate Robin the next time you see him. And Raven as well."

Wordlessly, Batman stepped out of the lounge, leaving Wonder Woman staring at the door with a pining look she herself could not identify.

* * *

"And do you know the sex of the baby?" asked Garfield, rising a carbonated water from the bottom shelves of the fridge. Raven and the others hovered near the island in the middle of the kitchen level of the Tower.

"Yes. And it's a boy."

"Oh, an enchanting occasion," Koriand'r celebrated, hugging Raven for the millionth time. "Of course, we shall also take care of babe as if he were our own, _shaylkagniz!" _

"You may change the diapers, then," the Empath loosely joked. At which the changeling cringe, a mental image of a used diaper entering his head.

"Well, maybe not help you with that particular task," he added. Laughs rang out as Victor and Donna emerged from the kitchens, plates full of food in their hands.

"Here we go. Dinner, for everyone," Donna announced, setting a plate of food in the middle of the island. Cyborg followed suit, asking Kid Flash to go back into the kitchen to return for plates. Unconsciously dubbed the cook of the Tower, Victor smiled broadly as his teammates began to dive into his food.

Speaking of eating food, Raven is going to require to _actually _eat from now on. He silently vowed to make the healthiest and most enjoyable foods he could come up with. He considered the physically smaller Titan his younger sibling, the one he usually confided in when doubts aroused in him. And she tried her best to set him straight. Speaking of the suddenly pregnant member of the team, Victor looked up and spotted her talking aside with Robin, who was talking in hushed tones to her, and raising a hand to pull down her cowl. The Cybernetic Man raised his one eyebrow. Those two sure looked cozy…

* * *

"Planning on eating from now on?" Robin joked. Raven's eyes flashed but she nonetheless gave a curt nod.

"I'll try my best."

"Good. I'm counting on you to feed that kid," a loose hand rose and touched faintly at her abdomen, "He has to be as strong as his dad, you know." A sudden rush of pink appeared on Raven's cheeks. Her leader chuckled, placing his hand on her cheek. "I was serious about before Raven. Even if they change their damn mind, we won't let them near the baby. Ok? Now, you have the back of the Titans to side with you. Us."

"You do know they can over power us, don't you?" She crossed her arms and raised an eye brow, prompting him.

"Schematics. You just have to know their breakpoint. They're not totally invincible."

"Well, they do have brute force."

"As do we," he smiled darkly. A sort of spark seemed to ignite in between their stares, and Robin felt his face want to inch towards Raven's.

"Raven, you going to eat, or what?" Called the pink-haired witch, her plate holding a sort of sandwich. Raven stared up into his eyes.

"Duty calls." Her leader led a husky chuckle escape him and released her. Robin followed her with his gaze to the island.

A flying projectile in the sky caught his eye.

"I'll be right back, guys," The Boy Wonder called over his shoulder, heading for the halls. A chorus of replies followed him out, Garfield's especially loud.

* * *

"Relying messages now?" Robin greeted, arms crossed. A dark shadow jumped swiftly from the pitch black jet on the same dock the Titans' own aircraft resided, and landed a few feet from the Titan Leader. The large cape encased his shoulders and spread over his feet, seeming to bring darkness with it.

"Enough small talk, Dick. This is much more serious than you give it credit for." Robin's tense smile slowly left his face. His eyes squared solely on the Dark Knight.

"Alright. What am I not calculating here?"

"Aside the responsibility taking care of a child, the responsibility of maintaining a dutiful obligation of Jump City-"

"-Uh huh-"

"-Superman's stupidity-"

"-That one was a given, really-"

"-And the now emotional bonds you share with a teammate." Robin glared.

"There's nothing wrong with caring for someone, Bruce."

"She'll be a liability and you'll loose focus."

"Then what was all that talk about 'backing us up' on our decision? Was that it? All talk?"

"I don't speak what I don't mean. You know that."

"Then?!"

"It's a pity this child is brought to Earth by parents who are else wise compromised, but that isn't your son's fault. So he shouldn't be punished." A sense of déjà vu reared on the Dark Knight but his mind pushed it aside. "You shall need to provide for it, house it, and raised it." The Titan leader bit back a sardonic remark about who was precisely giving him a life lesson on how to raise children. His former mentor, who raised him into what he was today. Sometimes the man needed to really hear what he meant to say.

"Him. Not _**it**_." Batman glared. "You just handle Superman or we'll handle him. The Titans know. All of them."

"A smart move. Keep your team alert. Clark's been unstable. Most likely due to the need to be near the White House with Luthor being president now."

"Right. Either way, Superman needs to control himself. Lex Luthor or not, he can't let a villain get under his skin like that." They shared a brief look between each other at the statement, acknowledging the hypocritical angle they had taken. "At any rate, there's no need to worry. Raven and I are aware of how to handle ourselves." The former sidekick of the Dark Knight suddenly glared, "We don't need anyone's help."

"You won't receive help from me."

"Good. Glad to hear it."

"You're still young, Dick. You still have a lot to learn from the unbalanced forces that are in the League. There's corruption waiting to happen in that Station. And you don't need for that corruption to erupt for you to see that things may be bigger than they seem at first."

"I know. That's why you mistrust them all, don't you?"

"You can't trust anyone."

"That's why an emotional attachment is such an inconvenience to you, isn't?" To all appearances, The Dark Knight merely stepped back and made his way to his transportation, ignoring that statement.

"Just remember, Dick. Superman has a lot of influence and connections. One thing he considers stepping out of the line and he can rain fire, on all of us standing in his way."

"He doesn't scare me," Robin growled. Batman suddenly tossed a small package back over his shoulder, Dick carelessly catching it.

"From Alfred. He insisted." The cockpit enclosed Gotham's Guardian safely and automatically started the engine. Soon, the jet was airborne and zoomed out of the landing dock. A bat emblem shortly stamped the sky, and just as swiftly as it appeared, disappeared into the darkness and headed for Gotham.

Robin looked down at the package and began to unwrap it. Bruce Wayne's surrogate father and confidant, Alfred Pennyworth's neat handwriting reprimanded Richard for his actions though the scolding was short lived as the note soon turned into a familiar one, for the old butler was good natured at heart. At the end of the note, he congratulated Richard anyway, and sent his blessings. The last remaining Flying Grayson peered into the package and saw a small notice of a prepaid baby carriage and few necessities for starting parents. Robin couldn't wipe off the smile that appeared on his face as he made his way back downstairs.

All paid with Bruce Wayne's credit card.

* * *

Four pairs of eyes followed Superman's figure through the Station's cafeteria as he went to retrieve his lunch.

"That meeting could have gone a lot better," Green Lantern mumbled, biting into a sub he had picked up. Familiar and not so much familiar League members conversed around them, consuming what they preferred and tolerated.

"It was stupid, that's what it was," Flash snapped with a mouthful, crumbs and pieces of ham flying down onto his uniform. Hawkwoman sent him an eye-roll for being so messy but joined the conversation anyway.

"How was it necessarily stupid?" Wally speedily finished his sandwich in record time and wiped his mouth.

"Well, come on. He's angry because one of the Teens is having a baby with another AND that she's a demon from another dimension?"

"Half-demon," the Martian Manhunter corrected, his eyes flashing red for a second when remembering the Empath.

"Potato, Tomato, whatever. The point is that he held it for a stupid reason. He saw that the prophesy was over and done with and he still yelled at them?"

"She did put the world at risk, remember?" John Stewart defended the Man of Steel, "I mean, what if she couldn't put it back together?"

"But she did," Hawkwoman argued, swiping his soft drink from him.

"Would you have a hazard in your own home even though you knew that it behaved nicely? Or, let's say a wild animal in your home. He behaves nicely, but then the wild instinct calls for a kill and WHAM! It pounces on you like it's starved."

"That's different."

"How?"

"It would be better if you talked in the Delta-Zero room about me, I might not be able to hear you down there," Clark Kent walked by and took a silent seat besides them. Wally looked away as John had the decency to appear a bit flabbergasted.

"We're discussing about what happened in the conference. Not necessarily about you, Superman." The Kryptonian merely raised a brow and bit into his food.

"Call it what you wish. The decision was made. End of story." J'onn sent Superman a look but the Kryptonian didn't look up.

"Why are you pissed at Raven, anyway?"

"_**Wally**_."

"What? I have a right to know, right? I mean, I know I wasn't here when she first asked for help but-"

"It's not necessarily towards her," Clark Kent solemnly looked up, his food forgotten, "It's the species themselves. Demons are traitorous. They know how to manipulate. And if they want something, they don't stop till they get it."

"…I take it you had your run in with some demons, huh?" Shayera bore the glare into Flash's cranium as much as she could but she could not get the younger hero to stop.

"Yes. And I was trying to avert as much association with her as possible but…it proved pointless." The fork at Superman's fist knew not what was coming when the fist enclosed it and broke it in half, out of anger.

"But you know she's not totally evil, right? I mean, the whole Prophecy wasn't her fault," the red-headed hero turned to J'onn, "Right? I mean, you saw her mind or whatever. It wasn't her doing."

"…No."

"Then, she's not at fault."

"_Thank you_, Wallace," Superman towered over them all as he stood and went to dispose of his uneaten lunch.

"You are going to get monitoring duty for a few months," the Martian Manhunter informed The Fastest Man on Earth, reading the Kryptonian's mind.

"Aw man!"

"Told you not to mess with him."

* * *

"Everything okay?" called a voice to him from the darkness. Robin looked up. From the unlit hallway, the darkness itself shifted and the Titan's Empath emerged, holding a small place with a slice of cake.

"That for me?" he deflected, heading for her instead of the crowded kitchen.

"It depends. How'd it go?" He released a small sigh and closed in on her, placing himself before her and the wall. Raven merely raised an eyebrow.

"How else could a confrontation with Batman go? He's right, according to himself."

"Hmmm. Does he still 'back us up'?"

"He does, under his conditions. But we don't need him," he shrugged, placing a hand on the wall beside her face. Her eyes flashed, challenging him. Situations like this would be the end of him. An indistinct voice reprimanded him, echoing eerily like the reproach Batman had told him not moments ago. But he brushed it off.

"You didn't mention who was the other collaborator of my _search _to prevent Trigon from returning." He smirked, dangerously, and he neared her face.

"Didn't I?"

"No, you didn't. Who knows. I should warn the others, in case the father's dangerous as well." He chuckled, slipping a strand of hair behind her ear.

"You think you're really funny, don't you?"

"I can't do humor, you know that."

"I beg to differ." He inched closer.

"I told you!" a yell suddenly resonated through the hall. Both Titans turned, the small slice of cake falling to the floor.

"Nice one. Ever heard of the word, '_discreet'_?"

"You have ruined the espionage."

"You guys can come out now," their leader - _discreetly _- snapped them. Koriand'r stepped out, smiling. Victor followed as well.

"Is it true?" he asked, his gaze peering at Raven sternly.

"Yes. What you suspect, is correct. Robin is the father."

"I knew it!" Garfield called out, followed by a shocked Donna.

"I can't-"

"That would explain why you volunteered to go with her to the conference," Cyborg deduced, scratching his chin.

"I went as a leader, representative, …and father of the kid."

"Oh, a small version of Dick and Raven! This shall be a handsome _kchofmic_, if not the most handsome!"

"Thank you, Starfire…I think."

"So, any of you oppose now that you know I'm the father and I'm a little biased in the whole matter?" Robin challenged, raising and squaring his broad shoulders. His cape encased his body, unconsciously blocking Raven from them.

"No. That doesn't matter."

"Nor it should," Donna added. "We're defending this kid with out teeth and claws."

* * *

Superman sighed and the movement censored double doors opened and allowed him inside the monitor room. Hunger long forgotten, he stood before the millions of screen that made up half of the room's width.

"Bring up Image 683-4BBD." The computer complied and a live recording of the Titans Tower emerged. Automatic lighting lined up the Tower's top landing area, and a few windows here and there in the building itself were lit. A deep scowl marred the normally unprejudiced Kryptonian's face.

"I can never trust a demon."

* * *

**A/N: ...I was angry with superman...sorry. **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thank you for the support on this once one-shot. Now it's a four-shot. This is meant only to those who've reviewed and have given feedback. Thank you guys so much. Hearing from you guys makes my day. Seriously. **

**Thank you. **

…**And I apologize for the slight OCC-ness in comparison to the previous chapters. **

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**Review Reply (Since I wasn't able to reply through FF . net …)**

**In Colorado****: He has a later purpose. You'll see so here. **

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**---Seven months later---**

Night settled again over Jump City. The Zukav District lay in ruins from the latest earthquake and President Luthor's negligence of the use of the latest patent caused uproar in the normally placid city. Nights had turned slightly more dangerous and the heroes of Jump had been heeded to call more than usual. They helped where they could and Tower West had housed more heroes as time progressed.

Less and less communication transpired between the Justice League and the Titans.

Which settled fine with the Leader, but he didn't voice his thoughts. Changes transpired between the Team as well. New identities were donned, followed by changes of appearance. More noticeably was the expanding abdomen of the Empath of the Tower. Fearing media exposure and risk of health, she placed herself amongst the people of Jump, under a fake identity.

The disguise was temporary. Expecting the Tower to be under surveillance, Raven had been placed in a flat within short distance from the California shores, had the need to come to her or her to them, risen. Robin deduced that for sure the Dark Knight already knew of her location but for now, no alerts from the Justice League had made them take cover.

And the Titans had too maintained surveillance on the Man of Steel. By the media or by espionage - the latter more often than not done by Robin - the Titans had their ears and eyes open for any sign of his hostility towards Raven to be made publicly.

* * *

"Glad to be home?" a shadow asked Raven, who turned and allowed herself to glare openly.

"This place isn't my home," she whispered harshly, amethyst eyes flashing dangerously within the darkness of the apartment. But her glare did not faze the shadow, who in turn smile cheekily at her. He entered the window facing Tower West and closed the glass.

"Any word?" he asked, peering into the few monitors that resided on the wall besides him. The monitors were connected to cameras around the complex, hidden to the untrained eye, and a few that held connections to the Tower itself, had the need to communicate arisen.

"None. It's been quiet in the neighborhood as well as in the grapevine. No word of Superman. Seems he went on a little field trip and hasn't returned in days."

"That's not the kind of news I want to hear," the shadow murmured darkly, rotating the camera angles so as they could pan out further and capture more with their new angle.

"Nor do I. But he hasn't contacted us. Any of us. So far, so good." Giving the monitors a last glance, the shadow peeled his mask and stared openly at her. Raven sipped from a mug and glanced over a few drafts Victor had sent her to get her opinion on before he started building onto the Tower. He paused then moved towards her.

"How are you both?" the Empath finally looked up and stared at him a moment before she glanced behind herself. In the camouflage of a crib with thin netting hanging from the ceiling, lay the reason she was hiding. She rose and walked towards _him_, the other occupant following suit.

"His aura's healthy and he has been eating plentiful. He was given a clean bill of health when we checked out and in two days notice, he'll go back for his first check up." Raven felt his presence behind her as he peered into the crib.

"And you?" his voice made her turn and face him. It had been a week and a half since she had seen him but she could recognize his voice anywhere.

"I'll…I'll be fine." His strong chin nodded, then broke in a smile. The former Boy Wonder leaned in and kissed her strongly, which she welcomed. Afterwards, he pressed his forehead onto hers.

"In a couple of days, if the coast is clear, we'll move you out of here and back to the Tower. We're making the modifications we can to accommodate you both. We won't officially announce your return to the others in case word gets out that you were out to begin with and another demand of our presence is called by the League."

"I won't go, if they ask again," she slowly broke away from him and turned to the small boy, whose plush cheek wiggled as he dreamed. Her hands slid under the babe and brought him safely to her chest. She cocooned his small body with her own.

"I won't force you, either of you." Slowly, the shadow's black gloved hand placed itself on the back of his son, the warmth seeping into his gloves. A dark cloud passed over his face. "Jesus. We _shouldn't _need to hide. This isn't an dictatorship. We don't need to bide by his rule and fear him."

"He has gained power over with the military forces," she pointed out, turning fully to the now dubbed man, Nightwing. He blinked in surprise when her shoulders prompted his own arms to get ready to take the small boy. He did, with extra care, and placed the baby in the same fashion she had. The boy's plush cheeks stopped fidgeting, his body releasing a breath, and settled more comfy against her Leader's suited body.

"That doesn't mean anything," Nightwing continued, after a minute. He looked up. "Where did you say Clark headed to? Where was he last sighted?"

"Up north, Europe I believe." She moved around him and sat at the chair placed before the monitor, wrapping her sleeping coat over herself. He followed suit, his free hand softly rubbing circular motions on his son's back. Her hands moved swiftly of the keys and a monitor shifted in her direction, prompting new windows to pop up. The OTH radar detected on top of a discreet building at the edge of New York City Limits, bleeped out of stand-by and opened in a window. "Precisely, the last time the OTH radar picked him up was when he was flying over New York. Then, it lost him." The small boy gurgled and pushed unconsciously closer to Nightwing's neck. His currently shadowed face rubbed over the fuzzed dark-haired head of his son, glaring into the monitors.

"He's up to something Raven. He's been too quiet."

"Maybe he's given up."

"You genuinely believe that?" He heard her sigh and she turned to the man who had given her the most precious thing to her.

"No."

* * *

Jordan Elliot stepped onto deck of the goods boat, making his way south of the equator. The few fishermen he had befriended sent him a greeting and made themselves busy within the ship. Jordan sighed and squared his shades.

He hoped his contact were right. Or he'd been going to Venezuela for nothing.

* * *

"Any word from Kent?" greeted the Dark Knight, not turning from his own giant monitors that were a sort of metaphoric shield that stood before one tumbled down the vast darkness of his sanctum, physically and mentally. Diana Prince stepped from the last stair and walked towards him, her boots echoing loudly in the almost silent cave.

"Good afternoon to you as well, Bruce." She reached his platform and inconspicuously placed her left hand near her hip, the sensor able to read the microchip embedded into the soft flesh of under hand and allowing her to near him without raising alarm. He didn't turn to return the greeting but continued to feverishly type away. "And no, no word."

"He's onto something."

"As well as Alfred and myself, but we aren't going about our way to hide it from you." Batman's hands paused, for a fraction of a second then continued, windows popping up and closing faster than she could read their contents. Satisfied ten minutes later, enough so he could pause, Bruce Wayne turned to entertain Wonder Woman with his precious time. "Have you slept?" she asked. The Dark Knight's cowl hanged around his neck, his eyes housing dark circles around them.

"Yes."

"Liar." He paused and turned back to the monitors.

"Is there a reason you've come down here?"

"Alfred instructed me to tell you dinner is served and that we're expecting your company this time. That you have no choice in the matter, either."

"I need to find _him_, Diana. The man's loosing it."

"He seems stable to me."

"Then he's deceived you. You haven't noticed the changes."

"And I suppose you have. If there's any."

"There is. I can assure you." To prove his point, he rose a new window in which charts and demographics depicted math well beyond her comprehension. "The crime rate in Metropolis has risen 1%. It doesn't seem like a lot but the Superman of before wouldn't have allowed that 1% to come close."

"Bruce, it's been months since we've contacted or been in contact with either Titan and we've kept an eye on Clark - well, you have. Don't you think it's enough?" Batman stopped, his gloves creaking as his clenched fingers tightened. Wonder Woman closed her eyes.

Debating herself a moment and risking more than she would let herself know, she took a few steps closer, leaned over him, and placed a small kiss to his temple. Then promptly, she turned from him, and walked up the steps.

She appeared behind the infamous Father Clock that stood in one of the many libraries that resided at Wayne Manor. It opened at sensing her presence, chiming. At hearing noise, Alfred Pennyworth walked into the library.

"I take it the Master really isn't joining us, then?"

"No. You know how he gets when he _thinks _his 'family' is in a possibility of being threatened."

* * *

"I should go," Nightwing announced, unwillingly, in the small comfort zone he had entered inside the shabby apartment his son and …Raven, lived in temporarily. Raven looked up, typing up the latest report of her surveillance of the City from her end. Dick stood, immediately shhh-ing at the fuss that came from the small babe in his arms. His steel-toed black boots made muffled noises as he made his way back to the mother of his son. She stood as well, extending her arms to receive the small boy. Raven turned from Dick and placed the boy in the crib. Suddenly, arms surrounded her from behind. "…I hate to leave you unprotected like this." The Empath soothed his rattled nerves but could only do so much.

"I'll recover. This stage is only temporary."

"Temporary or not," his voice got angrier, and wrapped one of his hand with her own. "You're without your powers right now. I-I don't fully understand what you're going through. And Koriand'r won't talk to me either, about it." The Tameranean Princess had refused to reveal to Dick what exactly Raven was going through, out of respect and the belief she should tell him when Raven was ready. Nightwing turned Raven around. "Come on, Rae. We're well beyond secrets here. And we need to know everything we can to make sure you are both safe."

"We're hiding from one of the most powerful beings on Earth," she whispered, almost to herself, but looked up at him with a fire in her gaze, "I'm without the majority of my powers at the moment. My culture…we're powerful beings, the ones who were born with telekinesis and telepathy and other abilities, and when another of us was born, it was a reason to celebrate - for birth rates were low. But usually the mother is taken from the child at birth, in fear of the mother involuntarily hurting the baby or visa versa." Raven looked up at a shocked Leader, "No one really knows the intensity of the newborn's telekinesis or telepathy so close to their birth day. So restrictions were applied."

"Are you-?"

"I've neutralized my own powers. I don't …I don't want to take any chances."

"Raven-"

"The boy is half human," she continued softly, needing him for support, she deduced, "So therefore, a mother needs to be with her child in the first hours, days, so as to feel a 'connection'. …Or rather, that's what I was told at the hospital."

"…I wish I could have been there," he whispered, his forehead placing itself on her cranium.

"Jump needed you. As it will, always. And we couldn't let Plasmius or the others run amok."

"I know. But still…"

"I hardly looked attractive during those painful fourteen hours in labor." Raven felt his lips on her cranium as he began to unwrap his arms from around her.

"I'm sorry."

"You don't need to be sorry," she looked down at their son, "Neither one of us needs to be. He's a healthy boy, who will have to grow up a little different than the rest. That is all." Nightwing gave a small humorless laugh as he placed on his mask.

"I'll see you both shortly. Be safe." Swiftly, the once Boy Wonder left the building.

"…you too…."

* * *

"Nightwing, come in." Three days. Three days he'd been away from the others in a sanctum he had modified, just in case he needed to take the Raven and his son into isolation and safety.

"This is Nightwing."

"There's…something you need to see," Victor's voice replied, unsuccessfully shielding hesitation. The former sidekick to the Dark Knight paused, and crouched lowly on top of a building five blocks away from visiting Raven's complex again.

"What is it?"

"…We've got a package." Dick Grayson froze, angled so, that through his peripherals, he could see both Raven's complex and Tower West.

"From who?"

"It doesn't say. I've ran it through the scanners. They can't detect anything."

"That doesn't mean it isn't safe. I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Cyborg out." Sparing Raven's building a fleeting glance, Nightwing immediately bounced from the rooftop and shot his grappling hook. His adrenaline rushed through his body as he made his way through the city towards the Tower. Clark had better not started something he would regret…

* * *

"What is it?" demanded Nightwing, gazes immediately looking at him as his pitch black uniformed body entered the Lab room, his lone blue emblem glistening harshly under the lights. Victor Stone turned, his larger body side stepping and revealing a crate, a few strands of what appeared straw sticking out from among the cracks.

"This is it?"

"It's it. Though, I don't know what _it _is."

"No explosive detected? Machine?"

"Not that the sensors could pick up," Nightwing nodded and stepped closer. His boots gave a metallic echo up into the Lab's ceiling, following by the almost inaudible whirling of the mechanic part of bionic man that stood before Dick. His black gloved hand reached for the box. "Aren't you forgetting something?" Victor asked, retrieving a small bio-hazard suit from within the unnoticeable cabinets that made up the reflective walls of the Lab. Nightwing gave the small bio-hazard suit a glance before his hand deftly caught it and placed it loosely onto his person. A mask of the same fashion was picked from a cabinet aside the other, and Cyborg placed it on his still human fleshed head.

The remaining Flying Grayson grasped the lid, and pulled back.

No gas or explosions rang out. Curiosity winning over, he peered over the rim. Nursed between bounds of straw, were guns.

"What is it?" called Victor as Nightwing grasped something and pulled it from its crater.

"A gun!" a voice exclaimed from the monitoring window a level above them. The windows were build with double glass in case of situations such as these. Cyborg sent Dick a sideways glance when he suddenly gripped the gun with a tighter fist and began to visibly shake.

"Richard-"

"It's a Heckler & Koch UMP-9 submachine gun." Victor sent him a puzzled expression. Ignoring him, Nightwing reached into the crater again and pulled another, and another gun.

"What is this?" the bionic man voiced.

"Is this another threat by the A.M.H.A.?" Called an alarmed Koriand'r, who most likely had stolen the mike from an observing Donna. Victor sent the monitoring females a glance before he lowered himself, both his bionic and human eye to overlook the crater.

"No."

All three other team members looked at Nightwing, his response seeming to echo up the high ceiling of the Lab.

"Then? You see a serial number where we can run-?"

"Don't you recognize these weapons, Victor!?" Dick yelled, his anger reaching a new level, which would not condone well with his short fused attitude. Now alarmed, Victor Stone gave the weapons another once over.

Above them, a male gasp rang out over the P.A. system. Garfield's.

"Are those-?!"

"-Deathstroke's guns." Black gloved hands visibly shook, "His goddamn modified guns!"

* * *

Jordan stepped onto the marbled boardwalk and lended the fishermen a hand They _had _allowed him to travel on board, after all. They sent him smiles of gratitude. …though they could have also been happy with the amount of money he had handed them. His five-o-clock shadow itched but he ignored it.

"_Disculpa__**," **_**("Excuse Me")**he asked a small boy who was passing by, roughly around seven or eight, "_Sabes donde puedo encontrar a un señor que vino ase poco_?" **("Do you know where I can find a man that arrived some time ago?")**

"_Mucha gente viene por este camino, señor_," **("A lot of people come by this way, sir,") **the small boy made a move to be on his way when Jordan protruded a new fifty.

"_Te podrias comprar muchas cosas con tanto dinero, no es asi?" _**("You could buy yourself a lot of stuff with so much money, isn't that right?") **Jordan hated baiting the child like this but he had no choice. The child's eyes sparkled and his dirty hand reached for the bill.

"_Si! Me acuerdo aver un señor que vino buscando un lugar donde quedarse por un buen tiempo, disque para recuperar_." **("Yes! I remember seeing a man who was looking for a place to stay for quite some time, supposedly to recover.")**

"_Y sabes donde se encuentra?" _**("And do you know where he is?") **He asked again, dangling the bill in front of the kid.

"…_.Te puedo llevar a donde lo vi la ultima vez__**." **_**("I can take you where I last saw him.")**Jordan sighed. It was a better start than what he had to begin with. He placed on his glasses.

"_Anda. Llevame con el_." **("Go on. Take me to him.")**

"_Y mi dinero?" _**("And my money?")**

"_Te lo doy cuando llegemos. Te dare el doble si todavia se encuentra donde dijiste_," **("I'll give it to you when we get there. I'll give you double if the man is still there, where you said") **Takin a few steps to show the child he wasn't joking, he turned. "_Anda. Vamos_." **("Go on. Let's go.")**

"…_va…" _**("Alright.") **Cautiously, the small child began to lead him to the man.

* * *

"He's back!?" Raven snapped. Though her powers were placed under a psychosis of sorts to allow them to be harmless to the baby, they still could wreak _some _havoc.

"I'm coming over. That's it. No _but's _about it."

"…see you in a few," she voiced back, then promptly turned off the phone. With regained speed and seemingly, strength, Raven walked around the apartment, gathering the necessities she needed. Placing them onto a bag, she turned to her son. Slowly she approached the small boy. "I'm sorry. There's no time to adjust," she whispered, and placed her son in her arms. It was still dusk, but it wouldn't be for long. A car screeched before her apartment thirty minutes later. The buzzer alarmed her that Dick had arrived and demanded entrance, she pressed it and retook the handbag. Not a minute later, she heard his rushed steps coming up the staircase.

He burst into the door.

Dick Grayson - Nightwing - began to usher them from the apartment.

"You'll be safer at the Tower." The small boy cooed in his mother's arm, despite the rushed emotions he experienced around himself. The empath hurried down the staircase, a step behind the father of her son.

Soon, they stood before the remote apartment and faced the Red Firebird Dick owned, the car model that could be modified with a click of a button into a slick black unidentified number that Nightwing sometimes used to move around the city.

Raven deftly placed the child in the backseat, seat belting his carriage safely, and sitting down herself. No sooner had she sat down that Dick shifted the gear on 'Drive' and sped out of the range of the building.

* * *

"Allá. Adelante. Ahi es la ultima vez que lo vi!" **("There. Ahead. Right there was the last time I saw him!") **exclaimed the small boy, pointing towards the most distraught but also distant hut from the accumulated bunch that made up the small district Jordan had stepped foot on.

"Esta esa cabaña?" **("This is the hut?")** Jordan asked, never removing his eyes from the hut. The small boy jumped in front of him, excited.

"Ya le dije. Ahora, mi dinero!" **("I already told you. Now, my money!")** Jordan reached into his pocket and produced the bills. He handed them wordlessly at the child.

"Gracias por tu ayuda. Ahora anda, que seguramente tu mama anda preguntando por ti." **("Thanks for your help. Now go, surely your mom is asking for you.")**

"Yo ya no tengo mama, señor." **("I no longer have a mom, sir.") **Abruptly, the kid turned back the two mile trek he had taken Jordan through, back towards the docks.

"I'm sorry to hear that," he whispered. He pitied the small boy but right now, he couldn't let himself be distracted. Straightening his jacket he had donned despite the warm climate, he took determined steps forwards towards the hut.

* * *

Lights reflected on the Firebird's surface as they sped down the underwater tunnel towards the Tower.

"Where were the guns sent from?" Raven questioned, side glancing at her Leader.

"We've tried to track it. But the package has no trail that we can find. My guess is that it's been skipping cargo ships that have recently come into the country."

"You deduced that it's of foreign origin?"

"Yes. …Slade would have come personally if he was in town." Nightwing steeled his jaw and tightened his fists on the steering wheel. "We'll send someone to clean up the apartment of any trace of both of you. …Just in case I'm wrong." He sent his son a glance through the rearview mirror.

"How did the package manage to come onto the island?" Nightwing signaled with his chin to the compartment box in front of her. From it, she pulled out a folder, holding pictures blown up.

"Miniscule tire tracks. Look familiar?"

"Mikron O' Jeneus." The once small kid whose gift was his way with electronics, had resurfaced after the fall of The Hive and had ended up in a psych ward two months ago. Apparently not all of his toys had been taken away. "You think Slade's working with him again?"

"Something doesn't make sense," the automatic doors opened as the Firebird cruised through, "If Slade had the possibility of sending these guns, and making contact with Gizmo, then why not directly come to us?" Simultaneously, both Titans glanced back at the small boy in the backseat.

"Whatever the reason, I'm glad he's not here."

* * *

Bruce Wayne looked up, his eyes having glazed over, against his strong will. The computer monitor bleeps as several windows appeared, Diana's attempt at feeding him still forgotten at the table besides him. Black gloves hurried typed over the keys of the monitor.

"That son of a bitch," he darkly glowered before slipping on the cowl that made many a man cry out in fear as he raced towards his jet.

* * *

Jordan walked towards the hut. Dusk gave way to a darkness but lights shone brightly from the sky. The starts sure looked splendid in comparison to the smog ridden skies of Metropolis.

Suddenly, his foot came down on solid metal, instead of the sand-loose earth ground that surrounded him.

In a blink of an eye, the landmine exploded in blinding light, causing a sort of chain reaction. Lights lit up the obviously electric-hindranced village.

A shadowed figure dashed from the hut, weapons gleaming on his back. A blur of black and blue whirled past the armed man and stood before him, hovering above the earth.

"You should know that it takes a lot more to kill me than a simple explosion."

"That method of execution was not intended for you, though I have acquired something close to a nuclear bomb, if that fancies your taste." Jordan lowered his altitude, his black hair whirling in the wind. Towering flames began to hastily make their way across the dry earth.

"I need to speak with you."

"You? Well, this is certainly a surprise. I find myself totally indisposed as you have caught me in my least fashionable presence."

"Cut the chatter. I'm serious." The armored man smirked, his face hidden underneath black wrappings all over his face.

"Alright. Please. What are your interest that have dragged you from your dwelling in space, all the way down to this side of Hell?"

"…I need to rid the world of a demon." Jordan's body finally touched ground, and still, he towered over the man that stood six feet.

"And I have the answer you seek?"

"You've confronted this particular demon before."

"I have too many which reside within me. Care to elaborate?"

"She resides in Jump City."

"Ah. My favorite one."

"How…" Jordan stopped, once again questioning his sudden lapse of sanity. What would the others think? "How did you stop her before?"

"Well, Superman. Let us come into my humble abode. This discussion would be much more…_entertaining _than you realize."

In witness of the star studded skies of South America, the Man of Steel accompanied one of the League's most haunted for villains of their generation.

Deathstroke - Slade Wilson - The Terminator.

* * *

**- A.M.H.A. = "Against Meta-Human Alliance"**

**....sorry I ruined it this time. :(**


End file.
